Homecoming
by sociallyawkwardpenguin
Summary: Maura gets released from jail after Jane clears her name, and Jane takes her home. How I think the episode "Killer in High Heels" should end. Rizzles, of course.


**A/N:** I wrote this in about an hour last night, and gave it a once over today. It's not beta'd (sorry, CharlietheCAG, this one was just a rush that I didn't want to bother you with) and all mistakes are my own. I just wanted to get this up before Tuesday's episode, and since I'm traveling all next week, now is the time to do it.

This is my take on what _should_ happen when Maura is freed from jail in this Tuesday's episode. We all know though, that the episode is likely going to end with Jane and Maura on Maura's couch, laughing about Maura's visit to jail. To me that's unacceptable, and not just because it's not a sizzling Rizzles ending, but because it's absurd to think that someone could be assaulted and then sit on the couch and laugh about it. It doesn't seem to stop the writers from making that happen all the time though.

Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy this short, sweet, and sizzling one-shot. Among the Dead gets an update later tonight, so stay tuned. :)

* * *

Jane weaves Maura through the sea of reporters, shielding Maura with her blazer over Maura's head as they shove their cameras her face, each of them salivating for a sound bite. The medical examiner, a mob boss' daughter, had been arrested for murder, and now her homicide detective best friend is taking her home. It doesn't matter that she is innocent of the crime. It doesn't matter that the evidence clearly points to Maura being framed. These news hounds have already adjudicated Maura as guilty by association. Like father, like daughter, it seemed.

Maura is silent the entire way home, falling into an exhausted fog as soon as she gets into the car. It's been three days since she's slept. Three days since she's felt safe. Three days since Jane left her behind in that communal lockup, the iron bars clanging shut behind her. _"I'll get you out of here,"_ Jane had vowed fiercely, pointing at Maura with her badge through the bars as she turned to leave, the prison guards already reminding Jane that they'd done her a favor by letting her walk Maura down to lockup. Maura had heard the tears in Jane's voice. Maura had been terrified, but she knew Jane would keep her promise. She _had_ kept her promise.

Now that Jane has come to get her, she can finally relax, and she doesn't have the energy to make conversation. Instead she sits in silence for the entire ride home. Jane mistakes Maura's silence for anger, and thinks of ways to apologize to her. She doesn't blame Maura for her anger. It is not misplaced. Jane had _arrested_ her, for Christ's sake. Her own best friend. The person she loved more than anyone else in the world. She'd marched right in to her house and placed her under arrest for a murder she _knew _Maura hadn't committed.

Maura breathes out a sigh of relief as Jane pulls into her driveway before gasping. The newshounds are all over her front lawn, snapping more pictures, their cameras rolling.

"Put this over your head, Maur," Jane says, handing her blazer back to Maura. Maura fights off tears as she follows Jane's instructions.

She waits for Jane to come around and open her car door, and she readily takes the hand that is offered to her, providing Jane with a small amount of comfort. _Maura is not so angry that she won't let me touch her_, she thinks, relieved.

Jane barks at the reporters, telling them Maura has no comment and to get the _fuck_ off of Maura's lawn before she arrests all of them for trespassing. They don't back off, but Jane is able to get Maura over the threshold without much trouble. She hears several reporters grumble that they couldn't get a shot of Maura, and she takes satisfaction in that.

Jane leads her deeper into the front hall, her hand never leaving Maura's. Her grasp is strong, tethering Maura to her, afraid that someone or something will come and take Maura away again. She will not allow that to happen. Not again. Never again.

As soon as Jane locks the door behind them, and pulls the shades on the windows near the door, she pulls Maura into a deep, strong hug, dropping the blazer off of Maura and letting it pool on the floor.

"I'm so sorry," she whispers against Maura's hair. "I am so, so sorry Maur."

Maura just clings to her. She takes in Jane's scent, inhaling deeply and taking comfort in the lavender she smells. Somewhere in the back of her mind she realizes that she must smell awful, having not showered in three days. She can smell the musty odor from the orange jumpsuit she wore, and she realizes that her hair where Jane's lips are pressed must be oily and foul-smelling. Jane doesn't flinch though, and continues to keep Maura pressed up against her.

"Let me get you some ice for that eye," Jane says softly after a little while, and Maura whimpers at the idea of Jane pulling away from her.

"No?" Jane asks, confused.

"Please just hold me," Maura whispers, her voice hoarse from having to yell to make herself heard over the din in lockup.

"Okay," Jane says, pulling them toward the couch.

Maura shakes her head again and remains rooted to the spot, burying her face in the crook of Jane's neck. They haven't made it out of Maura's front hall.

"You don't want to sit down?" Jane asks softly, still holding Maura against herself, her heart breaking anew as she feels Maura tremble against her.

"I-" Maura hesitates. She has no idea what she wants, other than to just have Jane's arms wrapped around her, protecting her, for the rest of her days.

"You're safe now, Maura." Jane says it with authority, not letting Maura go. "You're not going back there. No one will make you go back there. You're safe at home, sweetie."

It's the term of endearment that causes the floodgates to open, and Maura sobs against Jane's shoulder.

"Oh, Maura," Jane says sadly before she apologizes again. "I'm sorry, Maura. I'm sorry I arrested you. I'm sorry you went through all of that. I'm sorry you got hurt," she says, anger coursing through her at the thought of someone punching Maura.

"You were just doing your job," Maura sobs, not caring that her tears are leaving a stain on Jane's shoulder.

"I should have stood up for you," Jane says angrily. "I should have fought them. We all knew you weren't capable of hurting anyone, let alone killing them. You should have never been arrested. I'm sorry I didn't find another way. I'm _sorry_ Maura."

Jane will never forgive herself for arresting her best friend and putting her through three days of hell. As far as Jane is concerned, that dark ring around Maura's eye could have been put there by Jane herself. She was responsible for protecting Maura, and she'd failed at that. She'd failed at protecting her from the predator that had drugged her at the museum fundraiser. She'd failed at protecting Maura from the group of people that tried to frame her for murder. She'd failed to protect Maura from being arrested by the very people Maura trusted most in this world. And worst of all, she'd failed to protect Maura from the thugs in that cell with her, who had tormented her for days, while they physically harmed her. Jane wasn't there with Maura, but she'd lived the nightmare too.

"_Get me out of here, Jane,"_ Maura had begged when she'd come to see her. All Jane wanted to do was get her out of that cell, but they both knew that the only way Jane was going to be able to do that was to clear Maura's name. It had taken her three days to do it, and that was three days too many. Maura had endured three days of fear and pain, and it was Jane's fault.

"I'm sorry," Jane mutters again, running her hand from the back of Maura's neck, down the length of her spine and back up again, where she let her fingers tangle in Maura's hair. "Forgive me, please," she whispers.

"Oh, Jane," Maura says softly, her face still buried in Jane's neck, her lips so close to Jane's ear. "You got me out of there, that's all that matters."

"No Maura, I let you down. More than once. When they threatened my job I should have let them take it, if it meant not having to arrest you. You mean more to me than my badge Maur, and I didn't show you that. I'm so sorry. If you give me another chance, I'll make sure that nothing like that happens again. I'll make sure you're _always _protected."

Maura sighs into Jane's shoulder before she begins speaking. "You saved me. Just like you always have. You believed me when I told you I was innocent, and you cleared my name. You know that even if you'd turned in your badge, someone else would have come here to arrest me. I'd rather it was you. I knew you were going to do everything you could to help me. You _did_ do everything you could," Maura whispers quietly.

"I should have kept you out of that cell," Jane says morosely, burying her nose deeper into Maura's hair and breathing in deeply. It didn't matter that Maura hadn't been able to bathe while she was locked up. She just smells more Maura-like, and Jane finds it intoxicating. Jane realizes that if Maura hadn't been cleared, she would never have been able to hold her like this again. The thought makes her throat tighten with tears.

"I can't lose you."

The words are out of Jane's mouth before she even knows she's spoken them, and she tenses up.

Maura feels Jane tense up, but she still hasn't let go of Maura, and Maura still hasn't loosened her grip around Jane's waist. She lifts her head up to look at Jane and is struck by how close her lips are to Jane's. How easy it would be to kiss her. She looks up at Jane's eyes and sees that Jane's focus is on her mouth, and Maura realizes Jane is having the same thought she is.

She can't lose Jane either.

She takes a chance and closes the distance between them.

"Maura," Jane whispers just before their lips touch.

They both suck in their breath at first contact, but then there's instant heat between them. Years of pent up longing and a love so deep it was unrecognizable to them both bursts to the surface and consumes them. Jane's fingers are tangled in Maura's hair and Maura's fists are full of Jane's shirt, pulling Jane even tighter to her than before.

Jane runs her tongue across Maura's bottom lip and Maura grants her entry, her own tongue vying for domination over Jane's. Jane pushes Maura back up against the door, pinning her there as she presses the length of her body against the front of Maura.

Maura unconsciously rolls her hips into Jane, and Jane groans, one of her hands leaving Maura's hair to trace its way down Maura's chest, between her breasts, over her toned stomach to the waistband of the yoga pants she'd brought for Maura to change into. She hesitates only slightly, and Maura encourages her with another roll of her hips.

Jane plunges her hand in and moans at the wetness she finds there. She traces her fingers through Maura's folds, swallowing Maura's gasps with her kiss. She keeps her pinned against the door as she enters her, and Maura breaks the kiss to cry out.

"Jane!" she cries, suddenly complete in a way she's never been before.

"I love you," Jane says fiercely. "I love you so damn much, Maura Isles."

Jane can feel Maura tensing around her fingers as they pump in and out, and she leans in to kiss Maura again before she resumes speaking.

"I love you, and I'm never going to let anything happen to you again. Do you hear me?"

All Maura can do is nod. She wants desperately to tell Jane that she loves her too, but she can't. She's so overwhelmed she can no longer speak, but she can feel, and she feels how much Jane loves her as clearly as she feels her impending orgasm. She kisses Jane again and hopes Jane knows she loves her too.

Maura finally gathers enough wits to let go of Jane's t-shirt and slip her hand inside of Jane's pants. Jane breaks the kiss and groans at the contact. She presses herself against Maura's hand, and gasps as Maura enters her with two fingers.

"I love you," Maura finally whispers against her lips, pulling Jane to her and working her hand at the same rhythm Jane is working hers. "I love you too, and I don't ever want to hide it from you again," she says. "I don't ever want to be separated from you again; do you hear me, Jane?"

It's Jane that comes apart first, Maura's declaration pushing her over the edge. She nearly collapses into Maura, but Maura steadies her until her own orgasm washes over her. Together they slide down the front door into a heap on the floor, Jane kissing Maura tenderly.

"I'm sorry," Jane says quietly between kisses. "I'm sorry for the last three days, Maura."

"I love you," Maura responds, cupping both of Jane's cheeks. "You got me out of there. You cleared my name. You brought me home." She kisses Jane once more, slowly and full of passion. "Now take me upstairs."

Jane grins at her and gets up into a crouch. She scoops Maura up of the floor and Maura wraps her arms around Jane's neck. Jane carries her, honeymoon-style, up the stairs to Maura's bedroom, closing the door softly behind them.

* * *

**A/N:** Also, if any of you have Twitter and want to join us, we're turning Twitter orange in solidarity with Maura, and using the hashtag FreeMaura to try and get it trending in time for Tuesday's episode. There's a link to more details at the very top of my profile page, if you're interested in joining us. We've been "endorsed" by Twitter Jane (i.e. she retweeted our plea), and it seems to be taking off! Have some fun and join us, if you'd like. :)


End file.
